


Snow White's Revenge

by Screaming_at_an_Empty_Room



Category: Fairy Tales & Related Fandoms, Snow White - All Media Types
Genre: Fairy Tale Retellings, Fantasy, Magic, Rebirth, Revenge, Second Chance, Violence, second life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-07
Updated: 2020-03-16
Packaged: 2021-02-28 17:35:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,697
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23051074
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Screaming_at_an_Empty_Room/pseuds/Screaming_at_an_Empty_Room
Comments: 14
Kudos: 147





	1. Chapter 1

_The forest was quiet._

The gentle wind brushing leaves and branches. The chirping of birds as they flew from tree to tree. The rustle of bushes as a small creature passed by. The typical sounds of the forest… were all silent 

It was as if the forest itself was holding its breath, watching the tragedy unfold within its borders.

The hunter rested his hand lightly on the knife on his belt, a grim look on his face. He had instructions to follow, and he couldn’t disobey them, no matter how gruesome he found them to be. His eyes naturally traced the back of the young woman walking ahead of him, her guard completely down despite the strange surroundings and his presence. She hummed quietly, bending down to admire a flower for a moment, before moving on to the next with a happy grin.

She was Princess Snow, or as the people called her, Snow White. A fair and beautiful maiden, innocent of the ugliness of this world. She had not even hesitated when the hunter offered to take her into the forest to pick flowers for her mother’s grave.

 _What terrible fortune to have such a wicked stepmother._ The hunter thought to himself as he watched her slowly choose flowers. His gaze was slightly regretful, but the grip on his knife never loosened. He remembered the Queen’s horrible command, his brows knitting unconsciously. 

____________________________

**“Bring me her heart.” The Queen stared down at him with an arrogant glare, standing over him as if he and everyone else in the room were her possessions.**

**“The young princess’s… heart?” He had hesitated at that moment, the thought of cutting out a young woman’s heart too terrible to consider. “But… why?”**

**SLAP!**

**The Queen’s delicate hand left a deep red mark on his cheek.**

**“I won’t ask again, hunter. “ Her eyes narrowed as she watched him, giving him the sensation of a snake eyeing a mouse. “Her heart… or your head.”**

____________________________

The hunter shook his head, dispelling thoughts of the wicked but beautiful Queen. There were rumors that she used dark magic to maintain her beauty, that young girls disappearing from the villages were the source of her seemingly endless youthful appearance.

 _Maybe that’s why she wants the girl’s heart._ He wondered morbidly. _I bet she’ll eat it._

But he wasn’t here to speculate. He was here to kill. They were far enough in the forest. With a sigh, the hunter drew his knife, silently moving behind the still humming young princess. 

_Sorry Snow White._ With a quick apology to the girl in his head, he brought up his knife, before plunging it down towards her defenseless, innocent back.

**BAM!**

Only to crumple to the ground as a rock slammed into his temple, knocking him unconscious. 

When the man awoke, it was to new surroundings. He was in a dark cave, the stone floor freezing cold beneath him. A damp smell permeated the air, mixing with smoke from a small fire a few feet away. The hunter tried to move, only to realize that his hands and feet were tightly tied, the rope digging into his skin. He tried to wiggle his fingers, only to nervously realize they had gone completely numb. His head was throbbing, making it difficult to think straight.

“So you did wake up?” A pleasant sounding voice spoke up, catching him by surprise. 

“Princess?” With a shock he realized that he wasn’t alone in the cave. In fact, the young woman he had tried to kill was currently resting in the cave with him!

She was laying on her back near the fire, staring up at the ceiling, never looking his way as if he had little importance to her. One hand rested casually behind her head, the other held the hunter’s knife, which she tossed up into the air, watching it tumble end over end before catching it inches away from her face, only to throw it up again. The action was nerve wracking, even to the hunter as an observer. With even the slightest mistake she would be disfigured, or killed, but she seemed almost indifferent to the danger as she tossed the knife up in the air over and over again.

“Princess?” She laughed as she repeated after him. “You still call me that after trying to cut my heart out?”

The hunter’s heart beat rapidly in his chest. “I- I don’t know what you mean?” 

“Don’t you?” Her smile was sweet, innocent appearing, but the hunter felt a shiver of terror watching her. There was something below the surface, an aura of bloodlust. This was something he had only felt before with his father, when the man had returned after a decade at war. But how could he have a similar feeling with such a young, naïve girl?

“No, I swear I only brought you out here to pick flowers for your mother’s grave! I did bring a knife with me, but it was for your protection! I swear!”

“Interesting.” Snow White had yet to look at him, her focus still on the knife in her hand. “It seems I was mistaken about your intentions. “

“So… so you’ll let me go?”

At the hunter’s incredulous question, Snow White threw her head back and laughed. “Let you go? Why would I do that?”

“But you said…?”

“Your intentions don’t matter.” She tossed the knife once more, catching it just before the tip buried itself in her eye without blinking. “You’re that woman’s dog. That’s enough to warrant me killing you.” 

Despite her young age, despite her reputation of kindness and innocence, the hunter had a feeling that she would absolutely kill him today. Panicked, he spoke up, begging for his life.

“Please spare me, Princess! I’ll swear loyalty to you! I’ll do whatever it takes!”

“…” His words seem to have interested her. Snow White sat up, her dark eyes turning to finally look at him, his knife turning slowly between her hands. “Only the useful can survive.” 

Sensing a ray of hope for his life, the hunter rushed to speak. His head hurt worse than before, but he ignored it, eager to please her. “What would you like to know? I’ll tell you anything!”

“Hmm… very well.” Snow White smiled gently. “How old is this… how old am I this year?”

 _Was this a trick question?_ “You just turned eighteen last month, Your Highness.” 

“Was that the night I fell into the palace’s garden pond?” 

“Y-yes.” The hunter stuttered his answer. 

That had been another of the Queen’s schemes, having one of her servants “accidentally” knock into her, pushing the young woman into the pond. But despite initially appearing drowned, the girl had woken up, causing the Queen to vent her anger at all those unlucky enough to cross her path. Even more vexing to the Queen was that after this incident Snow White had grown suddenly quiet and withdrawn, shunning close contact with others and staying by herself. This change in personality had made it much harder to plot against her. In fact, the hunter had been very surprised that the princess had so cheerfully agreed to enter the forest with him, but had assumed it simply meant she had returned to her earlier personality.

“Hmm… so the age is the same, even the name… but everything else is different?” The princess muttered to herself, seeming almost… confused.

“Your Highness?”

“The Queen wanted my heart?” Her gaze was direct once more, startling him.

“Yes.”

“For what?”

“…”

At his hesitation, Snow White lifted the knife, frightening the hunter into speaking once more.

“I think she wants to eat it!”

“…” The princess was quiet for a few moments. “… Why?”

“Why?”

“Human hearts shouldn’t be very tasty… it doesn’t have many nutritional benefits… at most it carries some health risks.”

“She uses it for her black magic, Your Highness!”

“Magic!” The word caught Snow White’s attention, her hand tightening on the knife until the knuckles turned white. “There’s abilities in this world? Have I been tested for affinity? What’s the mana saturation level of this area?”

Seeing his confused expression, she sighed quietly. “I guess this world doesn’t really know about such things. Let me check it out myself.” She closed her eyes briefly, a smile flitting across her beautiful features. “A level four… no! A level five mana saturation?!! An area this great would have normally been hoarded by a powerful union, and I get to live here for free?!”

 _Had the Princess gone crazy?_ Nervous, the hunter wanted to call out, but held his tongue when the seeing the girl’s excited expression. His head pounded, scattering his thoughts.

“Now to see what this body can do.” She snapped her fingers, and a tiny blue flame appeared on her fingertips. The huntsman screamed in fear, trying to crawl further away on numb hands and feet, but Snow White ignored him, frowning as she stared at the small unnatural fire. 

“Ugh, low compatibility with fire. So looks aren’t the only thing that have changed.” 

With a sigh, she spun her finger in a circle several times, nodding when an icy wind blew through the cave and a ball of water formed floating in the air in front of her. 

“Low compatibility with water and air as well, but slightly better. Then… maybe earth?” 

She picked up the dagger she had set down, and before the huntsman could say anything, slashed open the meat of her forearm. Staring at the wound without a change in expression or the slightest moan of pain, she traced her finger along the wound, a blindingly bright green light forming on her fingertip. Within seconds the wound closed up, the skin smooth as if it had never been injured. The huntsman gasped with shock, but Snow White only showed a look of approval.

“Hmm… good earth affinity, with a focus in strong healing abilities… not really my style to be honest, but I guess it matched up nicely with a good hearted girl like her.”

“WITCH!” The Huntsman screeched covering his head as if to protect it.

“Witch? Oh, you mean the magic.” The princess shrugged. “I’m an ability user. Not that uncommon. Probably more of you could do this if you knew the method, especially given how mana rich this world is. Man, I would have killed to live in a place like this before.”

“You’re a demon!” The huntsman shook his head, his back against the cave wall, as far from her as he could manage given his bound extremities. “You’ve possessed the poor princess! No wonder the Queen wanted you dead!” 

Snow White threw her head back and laughed, the raucous sound echoing against the stone walls. “Closer to the truth, but you missed the best part:” She was smiling. The expression didn’t reach her eyes. “Your Queen succeeded in killing your poor innocent princess, when she pushed her into the pond a month ago. Somehow, my soul ended up here after I died in my world, and I woke up in this body instead. We were strangely similar, in many ways… except in temperament of course.” Her smile widened. “This girl just wanted to live happily, maybe marry a handsome prince, never hurt a fly. Me? I grew up in a place where each day was just as likely to end with death than survival. I’ll do what it takes to be the strongest, meanest person in the room, because only then can I live to see another day.” 

“…” The huntsman eyes were wide with fear.

“Normally I wouldn’t care about any of this. Would stay out of unnecessary trouble. Besides, she would have never stood up to anyone. You, the Queen, these people… the poor little princess cared about everyone, despite how you treated her, quite the little saint.” She sighed. “But because I’m grateful for the second chance in this girl’s place… and because I don’t like the idea of people scheming against me, I’ll take revenge for her suffering and death.”

“Revenge? You promised to let me live if I was useful!” The Huntsman felt his headache worsen, to the point where he could barely breathe. 

“I told you only the useful may survive.” Snow White smiled brightly. “But you’ve told me everything I wanted to know already, and thus you are no longer useful.” She leaned forward, and the huntsman shrank back, terrified that she would stab him. “Besides, there’s no need for me to do anything else to you.”

“W-what? You’re not…”

“Oh, you’ll die.” Her voice was flat, emotionless. “But I don’t have to do anything to accomplish that. The first blow already took care of that for me.” She pointed to his head with a slender finger. The Huntman blinked, trying to think despite the worsening pain in his head.

“I struck your temple, right over the middle meningeal artery. An epidural hematoma causes unconsciousness, followed by a brief time of consciousness, only to lead to unconsciousness and death. Do you feel a pretty bad headache?” She smiled. “That’s the pressure on your brain, pushing it through the opening of your skull.”

“Please. Save me.” The Huntsman could barely see now, but he reached out in her direction. He had seen her do magic, heal that wound on her arm. She could do the same for him.

Snow White tapped a finger against her chin. “Sorry. I don’t have any pity for you. But how about this:” She held up the knife with a grin. “After you die, I’ll cut out your heart and serve it to the Queen to eat. At least that way, you’ve completed your last task… at least part way.”

“N-no” The huntsman tried to shake his head, but darkness was already closing in, his head feeling too heavy to hold up.

“Don’t feel too bad.” The princess whispered. “You won’t be alone in Hell for long. I’ll send them all to follow you soon. And their deaths will be so much more painful than yours.”

The Huntsman wanted to speak, but before he could summon the energy, he felt himself fall into the darkness.

_Snow White was supposed to be a simple, innocent girl. An easy target. Someone who could only be saved or damned by his choice and actions._

He would have laughed at the thought, but he couldn’t move his lips.

_I followed a demon into the forest instead._

____________________________

Snow watched the man slump against the ground, one of his pupils blown wide, making the eye seem almost entirely black.

 _A better death than he deserved._ Stretching, she picked up the blade and started the arduous task of cutting out his heart. It was harder than she thought it would be, the sternum difficult to crack even with the huntsman’s sharp blade.

“It would have been nice if he had brought tools for this, since he planned to bring my heart back.” She muttered, ignoring the cooling blood on her hands as she sliced through the connective tissue and large vessels holding the heart into place. “If I knew it was going to be this much trouble, I would have gone for a deer heart instead.”

Shrugging, she placed the gruesome trophy in a waterproof sack from the huntsman’s belt, and, after robbing the corpse of any valuables and weapons, set back towards the palace. 

____________________________

The Queen stood in front of an ornate mirror, staring into her own, beautiful reflection. Her bright green eyes, golden hair and full figure that had gained her countless admirers stared back at her. The passage of time had shown no trace on her face, her skin. 

Definitely worth the sacrifice of blood it took to keep things that way.

“Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?” She whispered, a finger tracing along the cold glass.

Her image disappeared, to be replaced by a pair of golden eyes.

“Why must you ask this question over and over? You never like the answer.”

The Queen gritted her teeth. “Answer me!”

“Fine. The fairest in the kingdom is still your step-daughter Snow White.” The eyes in the mirror narrowed happily “Congrats on being second place once more, my queen!”

**BAM!**

Her fist struck the wall next to the mirror, the skin breaking under the force of the impact. The Queen watched coldly as blood dripped down, staining the carpet at her feet. “Why hasn’t he killed her yet?” She muttered to herself. “Don’t tell me that little slut seduced him and convinced him to let her go?”

“I can guarantee that isn’t what happened.” The mirror answered smugly.

The Queen gripped the mirror’s edges. “Tell me then!”

“No. You know the contract. One question per day. Or do you wish to sacrifice ten years of your life to me just to gain an additional question?”

“I refuse.”

“I thought so.”

The Queen walked away, frustrated. _How is she still alive? What more do I have to do to kill her?_ Thinking of the young woman’s flawless appearance, her hands clenched at her side, the nails digging into her palm.

“If she comes back, I’ll just have to take matters into my own hands.”

The mirror simply laughed, the sound causing a sense of dread to well up within her.

“Good luck with that.”

The Queen turned around quickly, meaning to ask the mirror about the meaning behind its words, but the eyes had already disappeared, leaving only her reflection behind. 

____________________________

“Alex, don’t look so glum. We’re coming here for vacation, not a death sentence.” The glib words of his friend caused the young man who had been staring out of the carriage window to look over with exasperation. 

“Easy for you to say, Phil. You’re not the one being pressured to marry.”

Phil clapped him on the shoulder. “Oh come on, poor little prince, getting to wed the fairest in the land. Besides, she seemed fairly nice last time we saw her.”

Alex sighed. “I don’t want to marry her, though. She’s very beautiful, sure, but… she’s so nice and sweet it’s almost difficult to bear. You could spit in her face and she would bake you cookies in response. I wouldn’t mind being her friend, but romance, marriage…” He shook his head. “I’ve grown up in a cutthroat environment. My brothers have been trying to kill me since I was four, hoping to increase their chances of taking the throne. I’ve got blood on my hands, and I’ll get plenty more on them if I hope to survive. How’s an innocent and naïve person like that supposed to survive by my side? I wouldn’t be doing her any favors.” 

“I guess you have a point.” Phil sighed. “Who knows. It has been a few years since we last saw her. Maybe she’s changed?”

“No one changes that much.” Alex muttered. “She’d have to become a whole different person.”

The carriage moved on in silence, both young men left to their own thoughts. 

____________________________

Snow walked out from the trees, staring at the palace gates in the distance.Soon she would be thrust into the schemes and manipulations of her murderous stepmother, the plots of a treacherous court, the indifference of those who were supposed to care for her.

She was interested to play along. She hadn’t felt so carefree in a long time.

_I never thought I’d get a second chance._

Snow had thought that her death at the hands of her best friend was the end of it. The moment the knife entered her heart, the pain from the betrayal worse than the pain from blow, she had known that all the years of struggling, of becoming stronger just to survive, had come to nothing. She had died in a ditch in a mana-poor level one zone, with her friend’s knife in her back, helpless and alone.

And then she had woken up in a different world, as a different person, a young princess whose stepmother had just tried to drown her because she was jealous of her beauty.

Snow had hid herself away, sorting through a series of scattered memories that were not her own, slowly growing to understand the poor innocent girl who had died at the hands of her only family. 

But now, it was time to stop hiding. The Queen had tried to take her life again, this time using the hands of the worthless huntsman. Snow wasn’t about to let that go. She would make that woman, and all those beside her, regret every day that they had tormented the poor soul who had lived here before her.

She would take her time, and walk them slowly step by step into hell.

A cruel smile formed, oddly out of place on her innocent face.

_It was time to go home._


	2. Chapter 2

**“** I can’t believe that worthless brat is still alive!” 

The Queen’s angry shout was accompanied by the loud crash of her wine glass against the wall. The shattered pieces flew through the air, landing on her skirt and shoes, but the woman ignored them, her gaze focused instead on the blood spattered girl being escorted through the palace gates. The entry guard had already passed on her story, the words causing the Queen to wish there were more things to smash in the room.

“A wild animal?! Killing the huntsman but not that brat?!” She shook her head. “How is it possible?” 

“Is that a question for me?” The golden eyes in the enchanted mirror showed enjoyment as the item watched the Queen’s fury. “I’m more than happy to exchange the answer for a few years of your life energy.”

“Shut up, you useless piece of junk!”

“Not my fault you start the day off by wasting your daily question.” The mirror laughed. “Be careful not to frown too much, or even your magic won’t be able to hide the lines in your face. You might be dropping to third fairest soon! What are you going to do then? Kill every attractive female in the kingdom?” 

“If I have to.” She muttered in response, but quickly calmed her facial expression. “No matter what, Snow White must die.”

“Then why not kill her? Why do you make things so needlessly complicated?” The golden eyes rolled with disdain. “Foolish human.”

He queen sighed. “She’s the daughter of the late king and queen. My claim to the throne is temporary, and fragile at best. If it were known that I was behind her death, the citizens… even the other kingdoms wouldn’t stand by. It would be seen as disregarding the natural order of royal blood. But if it’s an accident…”

Her slim, well-manicured finger tapped against her jaw. “Now that she’s back, I’ll have to be careful. Prince Alexander will be arriving tonight. He will likely wish to discuss an engagement with that girl.”

“And you care? If he takes her away you can be fairest in the land, right?”

“Fool. She’ll have a powerful backer to support her should she wish to take the throne. Rather than compete with his brothers, the prince may fancy taking over an easier fight here.” Her hands clenched into tight fists.

“Whatever it takes, I have to make sure that this marriage does not happen.” 

____________________________

“I have to make sure this marriage doesn’t happen, Phil.” Prince Alex forced a smile for the crowds as they rode into the Royal Capital, towards the palace.

“Again, I think you’re an idiot for turning down a beautiful sweet girl, but sure, so you’re just going to tell her that you won’t marry her?” Phil sighed, keeping a diplomatic expression on as he rode behind the prince.

Alex shook his head slowly. “Our parents had pretty much guaranteed the marriage before the late king passed. If I just refuse it now, her mother could make a huge political scandal out of it. That could hurt my chances for the throne back home.”

“You really need to think this through, Alex. First of all, I don’t know if her stepmother cares…”

“Snow White has to be the one to reject the marriage.”

“… I’m taking back all my concern for you. You’re an idiot.”

Alex grinned. “No, I’ve got it all planned out! I’m going to act like a violent thoughtless brute…”

“So you’re going to act like yourself?”

“And once she sees how different I am from the prince in her dreams, she’ll cancel the engagement and I can negotiate a non-marriage related treaty in exchange! It’s fool-proof.”

Phil stared at the prince with pity in his eyes. “I think you meant ‘foolish’.”

“You just wait. After I’m done, there’s no way Snow White will continue to hold onto the dream of marrying me!”

____________________________

“There’s no way I’m going to marry the prince.” Snow sighed as she tossed her knife at the practice dummy in the corner of the room. “Maybe it would be easier to just kill him?” 

“Your highness!” Gertrude, the middle-aged nursemaid who had always been by the princess’s side since she was an infant, stared in horror at the stuffed figure that now had a blade sticking through its crotch. “I thought you couldn’t wait to marry Prince Alexander!”

 _That was the innocent dream of a dead girl._ Snow thought but didn’t say out loud. “Things have changed, Nanny. I have too much to worry about now to pay attention to love and marriage.” She hesitated. “Unless… is the prince really strong?”

“Strong?”

“You know, can he fight? Cut off his enemies heads and torch their homes, stomp their corpses into the mud?”

Gertrude gasped in shock. “Prince Alexander is a gentleman! He would do no such thing!”

“Then he’s useless. Someone else can marry him.” Losing interest, Snow picked up another knife, taking aim. 

“But he’s such a handsome young man!”

“Handsome?” The princess snorted with disdain. “Being handsome only attracts attention, and isn’t helpful in a fight.” The knife flew from her hand striking the center of the dummy’s chest. She stared at it with satisfaction, and then nodded.

“Yep, I’ll just have to tell him to look elsewhere for a bride. Someone weak and delicate, who suits a man like him.”

The nanny sighed. “Very well, Miss. I can’t claim to understand your thoughts, but as long as you’re happy…”

“Don’t worry.” Snow stepped forward, grabbing the knife still embedded in the stuffed target’s groin and pulling it upwards, slicing the whole dummy into two pieces. She tested the still sharp tip and smiled brightly, the delicate beautiful smile lighting up the entire room. “I’ll make my own happy ending.” 

____________________________

“A toast to our princess, and her safe return!” A portly duke raised his glass, and with everyone else slowly got to their feet and followed suit.

Snow sighed with mild annoyance, sipping at the wine with a disgusted frown. Alcohol had been a much-coveted luxury in her old world, with many people willing to trade weapons and food for a chance to cloud their despair in a drunken stupor. She had fairly good tolerance back then, but saw it as more a necessary evil for business transactions rather than something to enjoy. Drunkenness meant letting your guard down, a chance for someone to kill you.

 _Not that it mattered in the end._ Snow thought bitterly. _I was completely sober when I was betrayed and killed._

She stared down at the wine in her hand, disliking the weak, sweet taste. At least the food was rich, well flavored, much better than the scraps she had grown up on.

 _Seems like the prince is enjoying the food too._ She glanced over the handsome young man sitting across from her, who was carelessly shoveling food into his mouth without a concern for manners or etiquette. Food was smeared around his lips, falling to the table around his plate, causing others to stare in dismay, but he ignored them, focusing on eating his fill.

Snow nodded in approval. _That’s how a leader should eat. None of this delicate small bites nonsense. Eat the food quickly, in case the enemy attacks while you’re weak. Maybe this prince isn’t as bad as I thought._

Curiously enough, seeing her positive glance at his behavior, the prince seemed frustrated and panicked, his behavior becoming even more loud and boisterous.

“I haven’t eaten food this good since the Battle of Brent!” He yelled out desperately, swinging his wine glass and spilling the liquid inside. “I was decapitating enemies left and right, crushing their corpses, ignoring their cries for mercy!” 

Many of the noblewomen turned pale at his violent words, covering their mouths with handkerchiefs. A few even stood up to leave, too overwhelmed as he went into detail as to how he killed and dismembered his foes. Even the Queen seemed overwhelmed by the Prince’s brutish behavior, keeping her eyes on her own plate. Only two people in the room seemed unfazed by his words, his friend Phillip, the son of the Duke of Willowford, who just rolled his eyes, and Snow herself, who found herself increasingly interested in the man in front of her. 

_Maybe the previous soul had good taste after all…_ She studied him closely, unsure as to why he seemed so frustrated. _He seems like a violent, merciless warrior, without concern for this kingdom’s silly rules for politeness. He doesn’t look all that strong though… I’d have to fight him to see if he is worthy to be an ally._

But as for marriage… Snow was still against it. She had seen too many fighters lose their lives at the hands of their so-called loved ones, and so had avoided relationships previously. Besides, the betrayal of her second in command in her previous life was still too fresh to consider trusting someone again very soon.

 _He’s probably looking for a delicate, submissive wife, so it shouldn’t be too hard to persuade him to look elsewhere._ Just as Snow thought this, she realized that an opportunity had presented itself in the form of a dessert.

She took a small bite of the cake in front of her, a familiar tingling on her tongue alerting her to the poison inside. She tapped her leg under the table, hiding the green flash of her magic as she checked her body’s condition. It targeted the gastrointestinal system causing large volume vomiting and diarrhea within minutes of ingestion. 

_I assume the Queen wants to humiliate me, by forcing me into such a state before I can escape to the privacy of my rooms?_ She took another bite, tapping her knee again, her magic nullifying the poisons effects. _Still, it seems like too good of a chance to pass up. Getting back at the Queen and disgusting my potential fiancé at the same time…_ With a smile, she took one more bite, this time only partially nullifying the effects of the poison.

Her face turning a bright white, she staggered to her feet, not missing the Queen’s satisfied smirk. For an odd reason the Prince seemed excited too, standing up as well.

“My rough manners and words must have offended you Princess, I understand if you need to excuse yourself…” 

**BLEGH.**

Snow staggered over to the head of the table, vomiting all over the Queen.

“…” The room went silent as they stared in shock at the scene before them. The Queen’s eyes were wide, her hands shaking as she glared at Snow, who smiled sweetly back.

“Mother, I don’t feel well. May I be excused?”

“…Go ahead.” She answered through gritted teeth.

“Thanks, Mother!” Grinning as if the woman who just projectile vomited at a formal dinner party was not her, Snow skipped out of the room, heading back to the courtyard outside her rooms. 

____________________________

“… The party is over.” The Queen finally spoke up again, stepping up and rushing from the room, dripping vile smelling fluid.

Prince Alex sighed sadly, covering his head in his hands. “That didn’t go well.”

Phil looked over. “Really? It looked like you were having fun?”

“Well, yeah, I don’t normally get to eat and talk however I want and formal functions, it was kind of a relief to get to act like I do out in the battlefield rather than play the part of the charming prince.”

“So what’s the problem?”

“Snow White wasn’t offended!” Alex groaned. “Did you see her smiling at me throughout the dinner?”

“Maybe she’s not as delicate and weak as you thought?”

“No. She must be so captivated by my looks that she doesn’t care how brutish I act.”

Phil rolled his eyes, looking physically pained. “Do you even hear yourself?”

“I’ll have to strike more directly, be insulting.” Alex stared sadly at the leftover food for a few moments, before standing up.

“The poor girl just vomited in front of the entire royal court, don’t you think you should give her a break?”

“This is for her own good that she’s not engaged to me…”

“And your selfishness that you want her to be the one to break it off…”

Alex sighed. “You’re not wrong. But I’m going to try.” With that he walked away in the direction Snow White had fled earlier.

“Idiot.” Phil muttered, following slowly behind. 

____________________________

The prince came upon Snow White as she was rinsing her face and mouth in a bucket of icy water in the courtyard outside her rooms. Without giving much thought as to why the delicate princess was using stale cold water outside rather than taking a warm bath, he stepped forward, keeping his voice harsh and overbearing.

“Hey you!”

Snow White turned towards the prince with a neutral expression. “Are you talking to me?”

“Yeah! I have something to say.”

The princess straightened up, stepping closer while drying her face with a rough cloth, obviously willing to listen. Alex took a deep breath, mentally steeling himself.

“I think you’re scrawny looking!”

Snow White nodded pleasantly. 

“And you’re ugly!”

Despite his horrible words, Snow White continued to stare at him, unconcerned, as if his words were simple facts rather than terrible insults. Feeling desperate and guilty, he tried once more.

“No man in his right mind would marry you!”

The princess shrugged, her flawless features still tranquil. “Is that all?”

“…” Defeated, Prince Alex’s shoulders slumped, and he whispered “No. I’m sorry.”

“Sorry?”

“I’m lying, I’ve tried to do something terrible, when all you’ve done is be pleasant and polite. I’m so sorry!”

“… okay?”

“The truth…” He sighed. “The truth is that I can’t marry you, but I wanted you to be the one to break off the engagement, so I insulted you and tried to scare you off.”

“…” If anything, Snow White looked more confused.

“I do think you’re a lovely girl, but the royal court back home is a battleground right now, and I can’t bring someone as weak as you into danger. I wouldn’t be able to protect…”

**RIP!**

The tearing sound of the towel in Snow White’s hands interrupted the prince’s gentle explanation. She stepped closer, the torn cloth clenched in her fists, her face taking on a furious expression.

“WHAT DID YOU CALL ME?!”

“Umm…” Confused, Alex backed away a few steps, only to have the princess close the distance once more, now whispering.

“Did you call me ‘weak’?”

“…Yes?”

The torn pieces of towel flew into his eyes, blocking his vision. Alex tried to swipe them away, but before he could recover…

 **BAM**!

Snow White’s right fist struck his face, knocking him backwards. 

____________________________

Snow was mad.

Everything had been going so well. She had vomited all over the Queen, and while she was cleaning up, the prince had approached her of his own volition and seemed to be expressing an unwillingness to marry her. 

He called her a few names, such as “scrawny” and “ugly.” Snow found herself nodding in agreement. This body had very little muscle mass, she missed the thicker arms and legs she had worked so hard for in her previous life. As for ugly… well, Nanny had told her she was beautiful, and Snow had no complaints about the features in the mirror, but who knows what counted as attractive in this world? Perhaps this kind of face wasn’t popular? Either way, it seemed that the prince wasn’t interested in getting married, which solved another one of her problems.

Snow was very satisfied.

At least she was right up until the man called her weak.

_WEAK?!_

Snow remembered the feeling of her friend’s knife in her back, their whispered words in her ear still echoing in her heart. 

**_“You’re too weak to lead anymore, Snow.”_ **

Seeing red, Snow had already started to fight before she could think things through.

**BAM!**

After distracting his sight with a torn piece of cloth, she punched him in the face.

 _Ow! This body is too weak!_ Feeling regretful, Snow tapped her arms a few times, infusing healing magic to the max , hoping to augment her strength and speed a bit. To her relief, she felt her muscles respond, giving her more to work with in the fight. 

The prince had staggered back at her initial blow, more surprised than hurt. “Ow! Why would you…?” 

He was interrupted as she kicked him in the chest, knocking him back further. 

“We’re fighting.”

Alex’s eyes narrowed as he watched her draw closer. “If you keep at this, I’ll fight back you know.”

She swung at his head, smiling as he dodged the blow only to get her knee to his face. “Good.”

“I- I won’t go easy on you!” Alex clutched his broken nose, glaring.

“Who said I needed you to?”

And with that the two began to fight in earnest.

The prince was good, Snow had to admit. He had quick reflexes; his reactions were obviously honed on the battlefield. Even though he was injured right from the start he compensated quickly and launched a powerful attack towards her face, taking advantage of his bigger size and reach.

But she was faster.

Dodging within his range, Snow rammed a fist into his gut, causing him to bend over at the waist. Taking advantage of the lowered height, she kicked his head, causing his whole body to tumble backwards. Surprisingly, despite the heavy injury, he staggered to his feet, a bloodthirsty smile on his face.

“It’s been a while since I’ve been able to fight with everything I’ve got!” He lunged forward, seeming to stumble as he moved. Snow thought to take advantage of the slip, aiming a punch towards his chest, but he bent out of the way, showing the initial clumsiness to be nothing but a feint. Grabbing her wrist, he tried to force her around; to put her into an arm lock, but Snow simply went against the motion, allowing the bone to break.

 **CRACK**!

The sickening sound caused them both to slightly flinch, but before Alex could recover she had already struck again, her foot smashing into his cheek, knocking him onto his back. Then, not allowing him time to stand, she stepped on his stomach, forcing the air out of his lungs in a painful gasp. 

“Let’s get one thing straight, prince:” She smiled, not noticing that the beauty of the expression caused even the heavily injured prince to be dazed for a moment. “We are not getting married, true… but it’s not because I’m too weak. “ She leaned forward, her eyes sparkling with enjoyment. “It’s because you’re not strong enough to stand beside me.” 

With that she struck him once more, knocking him unconscious.

“I’m out of practice.” Sighing with dismay, Snow reached over and healed her broken wrist, wincing as the bones reset themselves. She then stared down at the prince, wondering what to do next. A strong blow like she had given him could have definitely caused bleeding within his brain. If she left him alone he could definitely die.

“He did give me a good fight… and he’s not terrible at combat…” Muttering to herself, she leaned forward and held a hand to his forehead, allowing her almost drained power to flow into the prince’s body. 

“What are you doing?” Another young man, Snow recognized him as Phillip, the prince’s friend, had walked up, staring at the unconscious prince with a mildly concerned expression. 

“Healing him.” Snow answered honestly, most of her focus on the injured man in front of her.

“Why? Aren’t you the one who injured him?”

“…Aren’t you his friend?”

“Yeah, but I’m pretty sure he deserved the beating he got. “ Phillip watched her for a few moments. “Are you a witch?”

“Not in the way you’re thinking. I’m not bathing in the blood of virgins or summoning demons or anything. I just happen to have abilities that are useful for times like this.”

As she spoke, the prince’s injured face slowly returned to its normal state, the swelling and broken nose fading as if they never had been there in the first place.

“Again, I feel like I should ask why. Your stepmother could use your abilities as an excuse for you to be burned at the stake if she learned of your powers.”

Snow smiled at the young man. “Who would believe that the delicate and mild mannered ‘Snow White’ beat the snot out of a man and then healed him?” She gestured at the now normal appearing prince. “He looks completely fine to me.”

“Good point.” Phillip smiled, and bowed gracefully. “Then I will thank you, Your Highness, for showing mercy in not killing my foolish friend.”

“Smart man.” Nodding, Snow stood up, brushing her hands off on her pants. “He’s all yours.”

With that, she turned around and entered her rooms, smiling.

____________________________

“PLEASE TEACH ME HOW TO FIGHT!” Snow was greeted the next morning by the sight of the handsome prince kneeling, his hands clasped in front of him as he begged with a serious expression. 

_It’s too early for this nonsense._

Sighing, Snow looked over the young man with a critical eye. “Why?”

“I’m very sorry that I insulted you earlier!” Alex stared at her respectfully. “But now I know you’re really strong and I look up to you! I have so much that I can learn from you to increase my own strength!”

“No, I know why YOU want me to teach you.” She shrugged. “That’s obvious. What I want to know is _why_ should I? There’s nothing in it for me.”

Alex considered her words for a few moments. “I’ll marry you?”

“Rejected. You’re too weak.”

“I’ll pay you?”

“I’m a princess, set to inherit the crown. I’m in a better financial position then you, who is still fighting for your own claim to the throne.”

“…I’ll be your servant?” 

Snow rubbed her forehead, frowning. “I don’t have a use for you. If anything, that young man would be more helpful, since at least he’s smart.” She pointed at Phil, who was watching their interactions with an amused expression.

“Traitor!” Alex frowned at his friend, who backed away.

“You two violent creatures leave my poor innocent self out of your discussions. I’m just here to try to reign in the area of destruction a bit.”

“…” The prince lowered his head and thought. “Is there anything you want that I can give you?”

Smiling, Snow nodded. “As a matter a fact there is.”

“Really? Because I’m willing to give anything…”

“I want your sword.”

“NO!” Alex clutched the well-worn blade hilt with a crestfallen expression. 

“I thought you said anything?”

“You might as well ask for my first born child!” 

“Again, not interested. They’d probably just be weak like you.”

Phil sighed loudly, stepping between them. “What do you like about the sword, Princess?”

“It’s well balanced, has been kept oiled and sharpened, and seems to have an appropriate length and weight that I could use.”

“If we can get you a similar sword, or perhaps one even better, would you listen to this stupid prince’s request?” 

“Hey!”

Snow ignored Alex’s shout and thought it over. “Sure.” She smiled slowly. “But I won’t go easy on you, weak prince.”

The young man stood up, shaking her hand with a grin of his own. “I’m counting on it, Snow White.” 

____________________________

“Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?” The Queen, having just finished her morning routine and makeup, stared into the magic mirror with a desperate expression.

Her reflection was replaced with a gleeful pair of golden eyes.

“Again, the same question. For an evil witch you’re quite boring you know.”

“ANSWER IT!”

“Still Snow White, your beautiful and talented step daughter, who has quite good aim when it comes to vomiting I hear.”

**CRASH!**

A crystal case of powder broke into pieces on the floor.

“When are they going to learn to not put anything breakable in your room?”

“I’ll make her suffer for that stunt she pulled last night.” Ignoring the mirror now that she had asked her daily compulsive question, the Queen pulled a hidden lever on her wall. With a screech of rusty gears the wall near the switch separated, rotated itself and an attached dresser around, revealing a hidden room behind it. She entered it, and without hesitation, grabbed a knife and slashed her own hand, dripping blood into the cauldron at the center of the room.

“I may not be able to kill her directly, but let’s see how she deals with the dark fiends of the underworld when they come to torture her in the dead of night.” She poured a few more ingredients from various jars and tubes, smiling wickedly as a green smoke began filling the air. “Just a simple contract, a few years of life force, but worth it if her torment will be enough to push her into complete despair.”

“You know what I love about you? Your boundless optimism.”

The Queen ignored the mirror’s words. “You won’t escape me this time, Snow White. You’ve been lucky this far, but in the end, everything will be mine!”

Her laughter slowly filled the room, echoing off the walls, as if the whole castle was laughing with her.


End file.
